"True." Andrew let go of Neil and wheeled away. "Maybe it comes as a surprise to you, Neil, but I am not a very trusting person. If I tell a man the sky is blue and he tells me I am wrong, I am not inclined to give him a second chance. I see no reason to."

"So did Luther not believe you or did he say you were wrong?" Neil asked. "There's a significant difference between the two."

"Oh." Andrew half-turned to face him again. "Sometimes I forget you are sharper than you look."

Neil struggled with his memory, knowing the answer was right out of reach. He thought about Higgins' visit and Nicky's parents, and then Neil remembered sitting across from Andrew on a bench in the locker room to ask about Higgins' first phone call. He'd thought Andrew's parting words strange but he hadn't understood at the time. He wasn't sure he'd drawn the right conclusions now but it was worth a shot.

"He said it was a misunderstanding."

The way Andrew went so perfectly still, if only for a second, told Neil he was right.

"Shh," Andrew said, soft like he was reassuring a cornered animal. "Shh, don't say that. I hate the sound of that word. I warned you once so you'd know better than to use it again. Why would you risk it?"

"Andrew," Neil started.

"No."

Andrew didn't raise his voice, but he didn't have to for Neil to hear the warning in it. If Neil pushed the matter any further in the wrong direction Andrew would shut down and this conversation was over for good. Neil grasped at straws, looking for the right words to say to keep Andrew talking. Maybe Andrew was right and Nicky's parents would never accept him as he was, but Nicky needed to try.

"That was five years ago. Maybe he's sorry."

"You say that because you haven't met Luther," Andrew said.

"Can I?"

That was unexpected enough to get Andrew's undivided attention. "Oh? What? Neil, you wouldn't know what to do with a god-fearing minister. You can barely stand to be around Renee. There's no way you could last a sit-down with Luther. He'd end up exorcising you when you snapped."

"It could be entertaining," Neil said.

"It could be," Andrew allowed.

"Let's all go," Neil said. "Aaron will agree for Nicky's sake and Nicky can see if his parents have come around. There's no way you'll let Kevin that far out of your sights, so take him with you. I'll tag along so you can harass me instead of Luther. Imagine how uncomfortable Nicky's parents will be if they have to contend with the five of us."

"Or we could stay here."

"Not as interesting," Neil said.

"Appealing to my nonexistent attention span is a cheap trick," Andrew said.

"But is it effective?"

"You wish it was."

"Please?"

"I hate that word."